Success can vary depending on what your version of it is. It depends on your individual goals that you want to achieve – whatever those goals may be.
With success, the key is to know what you want and why you want it. You have to be honest with yourself about what you want for you, your business and everything in between. You also have to be brutally and honest about what you are willing to give up to get it.
While the definition of success varies from person to person, the journey to attain the pinnacle of success is often the same. It is often riddled with obstacles that we need to overcome in order to continue. Some challenges may break us but the important thing is learn and grow from them and keep going.
Here are five rules to remember on your journey to success.
1. Make time for your family and friends
Starting a business can easily take up a lot of your time, especially in the early days. Entrepreneurs are individuals who are typically fueled with passion to get their business to be a success and that can sometimes come with a cost. You neglect the outside world and forget to make time for the people around you. However, it is crucial to always make time for your family, your friends and if you are religious – God.
They are the people who are with you from the very start so it is important to still set aside time to continue to build your relationships. It is better to build a business while prioritizing the people that are important to you instead of building the business and having your relationships break down around you.
It can be difficult, but creating that work and family life balance is important. Here are some tips to help you do so:
Schedule time for family
As an entrepreneur, you now have control over you own time. If you need to set a date and time or create reminders to schedule time with your family and friends -do so. Sometimes you need a break as well and family time can help to relieve some stress.
At the same time, you can also schedule work when the family is not available. That way you can free up more time for yourself for when they are available and not feel as if your neglecting them. So make the time, not excuses. Just as you are committed to your work, commit the time for family or friends – people who are by your side.
Determine your boundaries
Things that are important to you should be high on your priority list like your family. Set boundaries to determine what you are willing to sacrifice in the name of building your business. Are you willing to miss birthdays and work on holidays? Will you miss any other important events such as performances and graduations?
It is important to determine what decisions you will make when work and family events combine and communicate them to the people that it will affect.
Work Smarter
This involves maximizing the time given. You don’t have to do everything yourself – share the work with your team and delegate.
Another thing to do is learn effective time management. It is one of those skills that requires discipline but it once it becomes a habit, it will get easier. Here are a few books that can help with developing the skill.
2. Find a support system
Surround yourself with people who are honest, positive, encouraging and inspirational. There will be days when you need an extra push and it is important to have someone you can count on to help you through it. The size of your support system may vary – it does not have to be a large group, it could be just one or two people who you know can turn to.
You want to also have people around you that you can also learn from, especially from someone who is in the same industry. Consider having a mentor, someone who will help you develop personally and professionally and someone who you don’t mind taking constructive criticisms from.
Lastly, you must be able to have someone or people you can turn to if you need help. You can also consider joining a community with like-minded individuals. Networking is key for budding entrepreneurs so that you are able to connect with other people through forums, social media etc.
Nevertheless, apart from having your support system, you also have to believe in yourself first. Believe in your ability to turn your idea into a successful business and keep believing in yourself to make your support system believe in you too.
3. Invest in yourself
Remember when you were a child and you wanted to be Superman, Spiderman and Batman all at the same time? You would spend time learning all their moves and combining them to make your own version of Super-spidey-batman. At that time, no one could tell you that this was impossible because to you it was very much possible. I say this to say, never lose your childlike curiosity. Continue to be open minded, willing to learn and evolve.
Become a life-long learner by:
- Reading Books
- Learning from mentors
- Taking courses online or in a class
- Watching educational videos
By doing all the things listed, you can create ways of making money on the side or even multiples streams of income.
4. Stop comparing yourself to others
Theodore Roosevelt said it best – “comparison is the thief of joy”. When you spend time comparing yourself to other individuals, you lose yourself because the time is wasted thinking about some else’s strengths or achievements.
Focus on your purpose and your experience. Remind yourself of what you have achieved and celebrate those achievements, no matter how small they may seem. Continue to set your goals and work towards them. Use each day to elevate and before you know, you will to get to where you want to be.
Lastly, write your own definition of success and your only competition should be you.
5. Respect yourself
People learn how to treat you based on how you treat yourself. How you treat yourself determines the level of respect that you will give to others and in turn the respect that you will be given.
In order to respect yourself, you:
Accept yourself
Flaws and all. Be happy with all of the things you love about yourself, and be happy and comfortable with the parts of you that may not be so perfect and the ones you can’t change.
In accepting yourself, you also get to know and understand you. You will get discover what is important to you, your values and morals, your talents, your likes and dislikes and even your boundaries. Once you have discovered these things, you are better able to respond to specific situations when they arise.
Take actions
Take actions to become the best version of yourself. Always be willing to grow and develop for no one else but you. This is not limited to gaining knowledge but in other areas such as:
- Maintaining a healthy lifestyle: Take action to practice proper nutrition, diet and exercise
- Understanding personal money management: Take action to save, budget and invest
- Setting goals and planning to reach them: Take action to make goals and stick to a plan to fulfill them no matter how small they are
- Learning when and how to apologize: Take accountability for your actions and acknowledge when you have done wrong and have intentions to correct those wrongs
Get rid of negativity
There is nothing to gain from being negative or inviting or entertaining it in your life. Practice visualization and gratitude to channel positivity. Here are some ways that you can use to cut out negativity and practice positive thinking.
Build your confidence
We can’t say it enough. Building your confidence will help to build you. Here are some ways to do so:
- Recognize opportunities and go for them
- Step outside your comfort zone
- Continue to practice the skills that you want to master so you are comfortable with showcasing them when you need to
- Never compare yourself to others especially where you are at a a particular stage in life
We hope these rules resonate with your as you embark on the journey to success. There will be challenges but continue to dream, plan, yearn and manifest your success.
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